Wood Shake Roof Fire Hazard

However there are alternatives to cedar shakes that are designed to be fire retardant.

Wood shake roof fire hazard.

2 homeowners insurance companies commonly decline coverage or charge higher premiums for. Class a materials include flat or barrel shaped roof tiles fiberglass asphalt composition shingles and metal roofs i e steel or copper. Not cleaning your chimney for a long time can put your roof in danger. After the hayman fire in 2002 colorado springs banned new wood roofs.

Eventually fire rated shakes and shingles lose the fire safety advantages they had when they were new. If wood shakes and shingles are impregnated with fire retardant chemicals they meet the requirements for a class b fire rating and can meet a class a rating if additional materials are included in the roof assemblies. In florida which is the lightening capital of the world a wood roof is a big fire hazard. Cedur shakes look just like real wood and are fire retardant and self extinguish flame spread in the event of a fire.

Fire hazard wood is naturally flammable thus wood roofs are an extreme fire hazard. Non fire retardant treated wood shakes are not rated i e their rating doesn t meet the requirements for class c and should not be used in wildfire prone areas. This allows exposure to air on both sides. The biggest issue with wood shakes is their susceptibility to fire.

The reason wood shake shingles are no longer allowed according to multiple building codes is simply because of the fire hazard. Wood shingle roofs are still available but due to their cost and dangers they have generally fallen out of favor. Locally four major wood shingle fires in the last two years have caused property damage in. In october a familiar problem sparks striking a wood shingle roof sent five piano homes up in smoke.

A standard fire test is used to determine the fire rating of a roof covering. Never use untreated wood because they are basically tinder and are highly flammable. While some consumers choose to use fire retardant chemicals on their wood roof who knows how reliable those treatments are. Due to the fire risk a lot of local building codes won t even allow wood shingle roofing as an option anymore.

Roof materials may also have an a rating if they are soaked in fire retardants so you can still use wood shakes if they are treated.